Monash University’s Parkville Campus Launches ‘MOSAIC’ to Support and Promote Equal Representation for People from CALD Backgrounds
Monash’s world-renowned Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences has officially launched the Multicultural Outreach and Support for Advancement, Inclusion and Community (MOSAIC), a support network in the Faculty for people of colour, including those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
Established through a collaborative effort from a group of Faculty staff who identified the need for such a support group, MOSAIC’s primary focus is to increase representation of traditionally marginalised communities in decision-making groups and leadership positions.
The official launch took place on-campus, with MOSAIC leadership, the Faculty’s Deputy Dean Professor Paul White and Monash University’s Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Fiona Marshall among the guest speakers.
According to a 2018 Australian Human Rights Commission report, ‘although those who have non-European and Indigenous backgrounds make up an estimated 24 percent of the Australian population, such backgrounds account for only 5 percent of senior leaders.’
With full support from the Faculty and wider Monash leadership, MOSAIC is tackling the issue head on.
MOSAIC Chair and Co-Founder Dr Amandeep Kaur, who is an ARC DECRA Fellow at the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MIPS), said, although MOSAIC is still in its infancy, the initiative has already gained notable momentum.
“The response towards MOSAIC has been phenomenal! Within weeks, we went from two co-founders to 20 members, and now we’ve surpassed 40 including allies. The initiative has received robust support from both the Faculty and Monash Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which is incredibly encouraging,” said Kaur.
“MOSAIC stemmed from our commitment to identifying and overcoming barriers that contribute to attrition of people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds in academia. This community is a space where individuals from diverse backgrounds, and allies, can come together, share experiences, and support each other. We are driving both bottom-up and top-down approaches to eliminate these barriers, and it’s been truly rewarding to see the impact we’re making.”
Monash University’s Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Fiona Marshall said, “It was an honour to be invited to speak alongside the incredible team behind this extremely important initiative. In 2022, Monash established a specific project to focus on enhancing the University’s anti-racism activities and initiatives. MOSAIC’s mission to support people of colour and drive increased representation is central to our broader goals in helping to quash unconscious bias and significantly improve equal opportunity for those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.”
The Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Associate Dean, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Dr Betty Exintaris said Parkville places a very strong value on community, and integral to that is an emphasis on equity, diversity and inclusion.
“For students and staff alike, in order to feel comfortable, supported and empowered it’s essential that a sense of inclusion is at the heart of our community. We are proud to be home to MOSAIC and I would personally like to congratulate the team for successfully building this community at Parkville,” said Dr Exintaris.
The idea for MOSAIC initially derived from Dr Amy Chen who completed her PhD at MIPS and is now in a marketing and communications role at the Faculty. During her time in faculty research, Dr Chen realised that there was unequal representation of people from CALD backgrounds in leadership positions, and as such MOSAIC was born.